Claude Code 2.1.226 and 2.1.225 landed close together, but they should not be treated as equivalent upgrade events.
The 2.1.226 release note is intentionally terse: it describes bug fixes and reliability improvements without listing a new workflow or user-facing capability. The concrete upgrade checks are concentrated in 2.1.225.
The actionable changes in 2.1.225
1. OAuth token precedence
Claude Code fixed refresh-token precedence when a long-lived CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN is configured.
Why it matters: a valid long-lived token should not be displaced by a stale or unintended refresh path. Teams that inject credentials through CI, remote workspaces, or managed shells should re-test authentication after upgrading.
2. Workspace trust for claude agents
Running claude agents now prompts for workspace trust before it loads project-scoped agent definitions.
Why it matters: project configuration is executable influence. Trust must be decided before local instructions or agent definitions are accepted, not after.
3. MCP OAuth 401 recovery on macOS
The release fixes an MCP OAuth failure path caused by a Keychain read timeout that could surface as a 401.
Why it matters: if an MCP connector suddenly appears unauthorized even though the account is valid, the problem may be local credential retrieval rather than the remote service.
4. Remote Control recovery
Remote Control can resume more reliably after manual compaction.
Why it matters: long sessions frequently compact at the exact point where remote continuity matters. A release is only useful if the remote session remains recoverable after context maintenance.
5. Safer SendMessage routing
SendMessage behavior was tightened for named Remote Control sessions, including same-name safety.
Why it matters: a readable session name is not a unique identifier. Workflows that address multiple sessions should verify routing instead of assuming names cannot collide.
6. Gateway spend-limit warnings
Gateway users receive clearer spend-limit warnings.
Why it matters: an authentication-looking failure can actually be a quota or spend-limit condition. Operational checks should distinguish credentials, transport, provider status, and billing limits.
A practical upgrade acceptance test
Do not stop at claude --version. Run a small acceptance set:
- Confirm the installed version in the same shell and runtime used for real work.
- Test the configured OAuth token path in a fresh session.
- Run
claude agentsinside a project that has local agent definitions and verify the trust prompt appears before those definitions are loaded. - Reconnect one MCP OAuth integration on macOS and confirm that an old 401 does not reproduce.
- Start a Remote Control session, compact manually, and verify that the session resumes.
- If you use SendMessage, test two similarly named sessions and confirm messages reach the intended target.
- For gateway deployments, simulate or inspect a spend-limit condition and confirm it is reported distinctly from authentication failure.
This separates "the package updated" from "the workflow still works."
Primary sources
A source-mapped version of this diagnostic, including the upgrade checks, is maintained at TGWise Agent Lab.
Disclosure: I maintain TGWise Agent Lab. The linked page is an editorial diagnostic based on the official release notes; it is not affiliated with Anthropic.
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